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Iraqi leader places unity 2nd to fighting ISIL

By Rod NordlandNew York Times

Posted:
07/02/2014 12:01:00 AM CDT

Updated:
07/02/2014 11:32:01 PM CDT

A burnt poster of Shiite cleric Mahmoud al-Sarkhi at a checkpoint in front of his home in the Shiite holy city of Karbala, 50 miles (80 kilometers) south of Baghdad, Iraq, Wednesday, July 2, 2014. (AP Photo/Ahmed al-Husseini)

BAGHDAD -- The Iraqi prime minister, in an apparent rebuff to his international critics, said on Wednesday that finding a political settlement to the differences between the country's factions was not as important or urgent as fighting extremist Sunni insurgents.

But in a conciliatory gesture, Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki also offered amnesty to anyone who fought with or supported the insurgents.

In a speech broadcast on Iraqiya, the state television network, al-Maliki also acknowledged the embarrassment a day earlier surrounding the efforts to form a new government, which collapsed after the new parliament adjourned within half an hour of convening.

"It was good to see people united and showing up, despite the weaknesses we saw and did not hope to see," he said. Kurdish and Shiite legislators exchanged insults, and the session adjourned for a week.

"We hope the next session we will overcome this by cooperating together and being realistic," he said.

International supporters of Iraq, including the United States, have criticized al-Maliki, a Shiite, for failing to form an inclusive government that brings Sunni Arabs and Kurds onto its side in the fight against the extremists. The Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, or ISIL, and a range of Sunni-based allies enjoy wide support in many Sunni areas, and Kurdish leaders have taken advantage of the Iraqi army's disarray to consolidate their control over the autonomous Kurdistan region, including the disputed city of Kirkuk.

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"Politicians in Iraq need to realize that it is no longer business as usual," the top U.N. representative here, Nickolay Mladenov, said Tuesday, criticizing the political impasse. And U.S. officials have said that major military support for Iraq would be dependent on a new, inclusive government being formed.

However, al-Maliki appeared to reject that reasoning.

"The battle today is the security battle for the unity of Iraq," he said. "I don't believe there is anything more important than mobilizing people to support the security situation. Other things are important, but this is the priority."

He said the political process would not be able to proceed without a strong military. "We will move on in the political process," he said, "but we have to focus on the battle, which is on behalf of the people."

Iraq's Sunni and Kurdish politicians have refused to accept al-Maliki as a candidate for a third term, and the majority Shiite coalition was maneuvering to determine his replacement. Both the powerful marja, or council of Shiite ayatollahs, and the U.S. government have shown little enthusiasm for al-Maliki to remain in power, although his own party won the most votes in the April 30 elections.

"The Americans are putting the cart before the horse," said Haider al-Abadi, a prominent member of al-Maliki's State of Law party. "Things on the ground are much more important. Solving them will help solve the political problem for us, this is life or death."

Al-Maliki also said the U.S. government had said it would be happy to work with him if he remains in power.

"President Obama was upset about leaks that his administration was not happy with al-Maliki, that's the message we're getting from the Americans," al-Abadi said.

Al-Maliki's critics said his speech was another indication of why he needed to be replaced.

"The political process has to be first, and above all other issues because it is the only way to find a solution to all our problems and defuse the whole crisis," said Talal al-Zubaie, a Sunni member of parliament from Anbar province. "This is one of the prime minister's attempts to consolidate his power and extend his stay in office."

Al-Maliki's announcement of an amnesty, while broad-based, was directed particularly at Sunni tribal leaders. Their support against al-Qaida militants in 2008 was decisive in defeating them.

"I'm announcing an amnesty to all tribes and all people involved in this, there are no exceptions, for everyone," he said. "I'm welcoming them to join other tribes to fight" the militants, "this is in their interests, the interests of their tribes and their sons."

However, he said those who had blood on their hands would have to first be forgiven by the families of their victims.

In the southern city of Karbala on Wednesday, more than 40 people were killed in clashes between Iraqi security forces and followers of a Shiite cleric, Reuters reported.

The clashes, a clear sign of tensions among Shiites even as Sunni forces threaten the government's very survival, erupted when the police and soldiers tried to arrest the cleric, Mahmoud al-Sarkhi, late Tuesday, an Interior Ministry intelligence officer and a police witness told Reuters.

Security forces said they went to arrest al-Sarkhi, who has fought with U.S. and Iraqi forces in the past, after his supporters blocked roads and manned checkpoints around his neighborhood.